Zimne Wody in Busko-Zdrój

On the north-eastern edge of Busko-Zdrój, by ul. Stawowa and right next to the village of Łagiewniki, the spa town's houses give way to the gypsum hills of Ponidzie. Zimne Wody ("Cold Waters") is a cluster of hills cut by small valleys, fissures and sinkholes, at the foot of which springs of very cold water rise. The name is literal – and it is these springs, together with rocks full of giant gypsum crystals, that make this one of the most interesting short walks near the spa.

Gypsum, karst and "swallowtails"

The hills are made of Badenian gypsum, rock formed in the Miocene when a shallow sea evaporated here. Water dissolves gypsum easily, so within a small area you can see an almost textbook set of karst features: fissures, collapse hollows and sinkholes. Most striking are the coarse glassy gypsum crystals grown in the form of "swallowtails" – crystal twins resembling a bird's forked tail. On the sunny slopes grows dry-loving, thermophilous vegetation typical of the steppe grasslands of Ponidzie.

Two natural monuments and a karst spring

Zimne Wody contains two protected geological natural monuments. The first, designated on 2 October 1987, is a rock step 12 m long and 4 m high, made of glassy gypsum crystals counted among the largest in the world. The second, protected since 25 June 2002, is a rock 5 m high from beneath which a spring emerges. It is a karst spring: it collects water from the neighbouring hill, soaks the mouth of the small valley and disappears without forming a stream. Some sources describe the whole area as a planned nature reserve.

What to see

• Gypsum outcrops with "swallowtail" crystals in the lower part of the rocks.
• The karst spring at the foot of the rock step, which gave the place its name.
• Sinkholes and karst fissures on the hillsides.
• Thermophilous grasslands, at their most colourful from late spring to summer.
• A viewing tower on one of the hills, overlooking the surroundings.

Tripto tips

You can reach Zimne Wody on foot from the ul. Stawowa side by following the signpost; from the road it is a walk of about 600 m. An hour is enough for the site itself, including the tower and a moment by the spring. Wear shoes with a good grip – the gypsum slopes can be steep and slippery after rain. The area is open access but ecologically valuable: stay on the paths, do not pick plants and do not chip off crystals. The walk combines easily with the Spa Park in the centre of Busko or the nearby Karabosy reserve in Siesławice.